New Zealand U85kg identify fixes after early shock against Sri Lanka

It’s fair to say that the New Zealand Under 85kg got a bit of a shock in the first half of their match against Sri Lanka in Colombo on Saturday night.

Despite eventually pulling away for a 27-16 win, the New Zealanders had to endure a relentless Tuskers effort from the kick-off, one that saw them trail after conceding a well-taken try by midfielder Janidu Dilshan. In fact, it could’ve been a deeper hole at halftime had a forward pass not ruled out a Tuskers try right on halftime. So it’s no surprise that New Zealand coach Ben Sinnamon is pressing home the need for a strong start in this weekend’s second game in Kandy.

“We’ve identified what we need to do, which is start strong and improve our set piece. So it really came as no surprise when we got into training today,” he said.

However, the physicality the Tuskers brought came as no surprise to the players that took the field in front of another big crowd of passionate Sri Lankan rugby fans.

“We looked at a bit of film, so we know where we need to improve,” said flanker Josh Purdon.

“Hopefully it’s a bit more settled, there was a bit on last week with sponsor and commercial commitments, so we’re looking forward to getting to Kandy.”

Sinnamon has signalled that there will be changes to his side, while it’s likely Sri Lanka will follow suit after employing a similar selection strategy last year. 

“We’re just focusing on ourselves, there’s a lot of guys hungry for gametime and they’re not making my job as a selector very easy. Which is exactly what I want, to be honest.”

The first match wasn’t without controversy, with both sides picking up yellow cards. However, the outcomes of both were dramatically different. After Tuskers wing Janidu Dilshan was binned for an impulsive kick on Jarred Percival, New Zealand cashed in with a glut of possession and eventually scored through man of the match Pasi Asiata. In contrast, Asiata’s yellow in the second half for a high tackle resulted in arguably the best period of sustained attack by the New Zealanders.

“Ideally we wouldn’t have had that happen, but I’m really proud of the boys for stepping up when it counted,” said Sinnamon.

The two sides meet again in what is expected to be another sold-out crowd at the Nittawela Ground in Kandy on Sunday.